Conversation with Books 2007

Catherine Lupori, associate professor emerita of English and founding director of the Center for Women, led the panel that included in St: Ruth Brombach ’62, Executive Director of the Alumnae Association; Judie Flahavan and Mary Jo Richardson, alumnae. Their descriptions and conversations were lively, with many humorous interjections. Attendees also celebrated the Alumnae Association's 90th Year Anniversary with coffee and cupcakes.

First time attendees -- Tonia Shupen SP’ 81, Linda Johnson M ’90, and their friends Mary Moses and Judy Haworth -- thought the event was “absolutely delightful”. “This is the perfect time of the year, it gets you thinking.” “The panelists are great! They complement each other.”

Keep the Literary Conversations Going!
Read the books with other alumnae and friends, and use the comments below as a springboard for your own conversation with books!

As the panelists read the books, they realized that there was a recurring theme weaving through all the chosen works – that of unintended alienation. Some of the alienation comes from being an immigrant; some from being a refugee, soldier, or oppressed citizen; some from being lonely and isolated in your own home or culture. These books explore how the characters handle the alienation in their various situations.

2007 BOOK LIST
(Just click on the title to get to the panelists' comments:)

Suite Francaise by Irene Nemirovsky, New York: Knopf, 2006.
Joe’s War: My Father Decoded by Annette Kobak, New York: Knopf (2004) and Vintage Paperback, 2005.
Small Island: A Novel by Andrea Levy, New York: St. Martin’s Press (Picador), 2004.
A Thread of Grace by Mary Doria Russell, New York: Ballantine Books, 2005.

Eudora Welty: A Biography by Suzanne Marrs, New York: Harcourt, Inc., 2005.
The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty, New York: Random House, 1972.

Digging to Americaby Anne Tyler, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006.
Rise and Shine: A Novel by Anna Quindlen, New York: Random House, 2006.
After Thisby Alice McDermott, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006.

The Whole World Over by Julia Glass, New York: Pantheon, 2006.
The Love of Impermanent Things: A Threshold Ecology by Mary Rose O’Reilly, Minneapolis:Milkweed, 2006.
Making It Up by Penelope Lively, New York: Viking, 2005, 2006Saving the World by Julia Alverez. Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2006.
A Walk on the Beach: Tales of Wisdom from an Unconventional Woman by Joan Anderson, New York: Broadway Books, 2004.
The Painted Drum by Louise Erdrich, New York: HarperCollins, 2005


CONVERSATION HIGHLIGHTS

WWI

Suite Francaise

by Irene Nemirovsky. Knopf, 2006

This two-part novel, set in occupied France during World War II, was never fully finished by the celebrated writer who died in the Holocaust. It was carried around as a manuscript in notebooks by her daughter for many years, as she did not realize the full worth of what she carried till later.

The story centers on a family in a small town in France. The first part, which seems very autobiographical, elucidates the “unique experience of a very celebrated writer feeling the horror of the growing realization of where the occupation policies were leading.” The second part examines the feelings of the family characters (“love and hate and jealousy”) as they have a German soldier, Bruno, living in their home. Panelists noted that this second section was even more compelling since it is “more even-handed”, and even displayed some sympathetic qualities to Bruno.

The novelist lets you know ahead of time that there are some traitors and some resisters, and it is clear who is who – yet by going through the novel, one can ask oneself – who would I have been?

All the panelists found this book well worth the read – a way to experience what it is like to live in an occupied country and the emotional, social, and physical costs involved.

Joe’s War: My Father Decoded

by Annette Kobak. Knopf (2004) and Vintage Paperback, 2005.

This book is an involving mix of “part memoir, part history” and “part travelogue” that follows “a foot soldier in the Polish army” who happened to be the father of the author. When Annette Kobak was young, her father never spoke of his war experiences, and he was only willing to speak of it sixty-two years later, once the Iron Curtain began crumbling. She discovered that his silence was born of protection for his family, fearing that since he had worked for British Intelligence during the World War II, that he and his family might be tracked down and harmed by Soviet Union operatives.

When he finally did begin speaking of the war, Annette had him tape his memories, and his storytelling is woven with background history to tell this story. He began as a young man in a small Czech village, till he was taken into the Polish army, where he marched into France, and then joined the resistance, eventually ending up in London.

Like Suite Francaise, this story reminds readers that in every time there are heroes and evil doers, and they each have names and specific histories of choices made to affect others. The panelists all found this story engrossing, thought-provoking, and informative on lesser known aspects of WWII history.

Small Island: A Novel

by Andrea Levy. St. Martin’s Press (Picador), 2004.

With this novel, you step into the world of the “small islanders” from Jamaica, who live in London (on a less small island) in 1948 as the city and country try to recover from World War II.

“Queenie”, christened “Victoria” because the minister refused Queenie, is the daughter of a Jamaican immigrant, and she marries the son of a shell-shocked British soldier who lost his mind and has his son taking care of him. This story documents how Queenie and her family negotiate through the layers of classicism and racism of British society. Judie greatly appreciated the author’s “wonderful irony and wry sense of humor” in her ability to make “cutting remarks on racism but with a light touch.”

Ruth claimed admiration for the “absolutely lovable characters”. Catherine noted the distinctive voices of each of the characters in their internal and external dialog. As you read the novel, and the perspectives change, you never wonder who is talking.

A Thread of Grace

by Mary Doria Russell. Ballantine Books, 2005

This story is an additional recommendation that was not discussed in this Conversation event, but was in a spring Conversations -- however it fits well with the WWII theme, commenting on the other works through synergism and an additional perspective. It is a mesmerizing historical novel based on the little-known but true story of a network of Italians who saved the lives of 43,000 Jews during the final months of WWII. Russell creates a number of unforgettable characters who move in an imaginary landscape within real areas of northern Italy. As we commented in our previous discussion: “…somehow with all the tragedies of this story based on an actual occupation, a reader ends not with despair but hope.”


REVISITING A MAJOR WRITER

Eudora Welty: A Biography

by Suzanne Marrs. Harcourt, Inc., 2005.

Panelists recommended that this book was “not a book to sit down and read, panting to turn the pages” – instead you should go to the contents or the index and look up things of interest and read them, or page through and skim for snippets from the “generous quotation of Welty’s letters.” Catherine said that this “tome” “displaced the myth of an old maidenly woman reclusing at her old family home – instead, Welty comes off as a “passionate, very independent woman, with many friends, who traveled widely.” With two major loves, she was full of “wit, fun, opinions, and always kicking up a lot of trouble.” This was the source of some of her alienation, but another source was her perspective of the South, of family, and of Black-White relations and history, which was not the norm.

The book’s historic photos show that she was “not an ugly duckling.” The book also includes photographs that Welty herself took of poor Black Mississippians, which the panelists particularly appreciated.

The book, however, is an “exasperatingly detailed” biography that will “try the patience of even the most ardent fans.”

Mary Jo found that it took her a long time to read, not because she drowned herself in these details, but because she wanted to read or reread every Welty work as they were mentioned, and in this way, she found a treasure trove of literary delights. One that Mary Jo particularly enjoyed was “A Memory,” which was a favorite of Katherine Ann Porter, who thought Welty should stick to short stories and skip the novel!

The panelists disagreed with Porter’s assessment, because this biography drove them back with even greater excitement to Welty’s “The Optimist’s Daughter.”

The Optimist’s Daughter

by Eudora Welty. New York: Random House, 1972.

The panelists gushed over returning to this beloved book, appreciating the humor laced through it that they had forgotten. They found the character of Faye a complete hoot because “nothing she says is true.” For instance, she says she has no family, when her family is standing there. As Ruth said, “she’s alienated and she doesn’t even know it.”

Mary Jo observed that the novel demonstrates Welty’s vision of family, for at the funeral of the optimist, not many of the family come, but the whole town turns out. This is a foreshadowing of Welty’s own funeral.


WRITERS FAMILIAR TO OUR CONVERSATIONS

Digging to America

by Anne Tyler. Alfred A. Knopf, 2006.

Even the cranky New York Times reviewer liked this one. Ruth is not always a Tyler fan, but she found that this was one of her best. It examines the lives of two families in the United States who meet when they are each adopting a child from Korea. The Donaldsons are considered “true United States” by the other, Miriam Yazdan, who is an immigrant widow from Iran. Tyler has much to draw on from her own life, having been a young widow of a husband who was Iranian.


“Bitsy” Donaldson was considered “annoying” by all the panelists – “she not only wants to do everything right but she tells everyone else they should”. She’s so extreme that her child has 48 pacifiers, and then has to have a party to say good-bye to them at the age of four (a party that “went on a little too long,” for Catherine).

Miriam, on the other hand, is a thoughtful character, “finding her way through uncharted waters,” trying to pick up cues about what is expected of an “American”, while at the same judging these expectations against her values, background, common sense, and misconceptions. Everyone in the story is alienated, but they are interesting and believable. Mary Jo particularly liked Dave, Bitsy’s father, as does Miriam.

Rise and Shine: A Novel

by Anna Quindlen. Random House, 2006.

This was proclaimed a “happy book” by all, not necessarily as a compliment. The story is a quick moving book about a rich, successful talk show host being challenged by her sister, who is a social worker, with memories and secrets that upset the apple carts of their lives.

Panelists loved the descriptions of Manhattan, and enjoyed characters of the narrator and particularly her secretary, but they felt that the slim book rushed to its ending, which was wrapped up happily in a ribbon, leaving readers a little disappointed.

Ruth also noted that the author seemed to want to plug in people from every strata of New York society, and some were well written, but others were flat, almost stereotypes. “There just was not enough room in this short plot for them all to do well.”

After This

by Alice McDermott. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006.

To balance out the “happy” book, panelists selected a book that they termed “grim” though brilliantly written. As usual, they were swept along by the exquisite minimalist style of McDermott, and how well she knows the realities of Irish American families. This story, about the Keane family, is a story of “values held and values changing; traditions held and traditions changing.”

McDermott is a “master at hinting at disasters,” and in this story, there are many, until the mother, Mary Keane, asks “how much more can I take?” That is key to the story – how do people cope with disaster, especially when they pile up, especially if they are characters who are alienated within their families and communities? The end is not tied up in a pretty package and readers are left to wonder about what will happen “after this.” The book encompasses both an unexpected pregnancy and abortion, and Judie noted that they were both handled “delicately and lightly.” McDermott is a “very strongly valued author, and she is not happy about the way things are,” to which someone added, “who is?”

Catherine observed that McDermott’s style is so “marvelous” and “you can read the book just to read her style,” and yet she had reservations about story because she didn’t feel that McDermott liked the characters. The rest of the characters didn’t even believe in the character of Michael, the teacher. Ruth quipped to Catherine that McDermott didn’t get Michael or the classroom scenes right: “It would be like you writing about a bar scene.”


WRITERS NEW TO OUR CONVERSATIONS

The Whole World Over

by Julia Glass. Pantheon, 2006.

National Book Award Winner Glass offers a story about “Greenie” a pastry chef who ends up leaving her shop in New York for Santa Fe become the personal chef of the governor of New Mexico. Her husband decides not to come, and their son George is then torn between the two cities.

This story chronicles the year of New Mexico, and it ends, believably for the panelists, with September 11th. The title came from a poster of a migrating bird that said “The whole world over, birds fly the whole world over, but always, no matter what, they find their way back home.” This is a novel about everyone searching for home and a sense of home.

Ruth thought the book was flawed by too many characters, who weren’t tied into the story strong enough to make them seem integral and necessary (how do they fit in?) Mary Jo liked some of these less necessary characters, feeling that their meaning might be through symbolic commentary. A favorite of hers was the husband’s friend who after experiencing an accident, has problems with language and interesting ways of describing everything in terms of animals.

Mary Jo, thought, did think there were too many cakes and recipes, and too many pets (but the book still “sings”). These elements were strengths for other panelists.
Catherine particularly loved four year old George who wanted to become an astronaut-paleontologist, who would dig for fossils on other planets. An articulate boy, when offered the book “The Sneetches,” he tells his mother “I’m taking a break from Dr. Suess.” Greenie doesn’t push arguments with George, as in a discussion about whether or not Pluto exists as a planet, for she had learned “that splitting hairs with a four year old is counter productive.

An additional delight with this book is at the end the “wonderful list of all the children’s books she quotes from.”

The Love of Impermanent Things: A Threshold Ecology

by Mary Rose O’Reilly. Milkweed, 2006.

This beautifully designed, “one of a kind” book, from a St. Paul author, published by Milkweed in Minneapolis, is neither memoir nor novel, essay nor history. It is a collection of sketches, and the author hopes that “by following the logic of the images” one will discover a “different, softer way of knowing.” She felt that this may be a way to come to know oneself better.

Threshold refers to a “boundary” and a “beginning” and a level of value for measuring above which is one value and below which is another. Ecology refers to “the totality of relationships” within an environment.

With this set up, it’s hard to say what to expect. What you receive are intensely concrete and meditative looks at incidents, at nature, at relationships. Panelists found that this writer was using her writing and insights to pull out of alienation and to make connections, despite the fact that “the world is in its customary mess.” “Read it and laugh; read it and weep; read it and grow.”

Mary Jo felt that in many ways, the book was a “slow burn”. She disliked the fact that she can’t forgive her mother and her father. “She tries to love her mother, but she can’t do it,” to which Catherine responded “I couldn’t lover her mother either.”

They all loved Mary Rose Reilly’s sense of humor and how she doesn’t provide answers.

Catherine thought readers would take pleasure in the references to local places and people. She read a passage in which the author, who loved pottery, is chatting at her wheel with a sculptor, Peter Lupori.

Panelists found the book intriguing, and the poetry within it, powerful. Mary Oliver thought very highly of Reilly’s poetry too.

Mary Jo read aloud the Reilly’s poem jewel: “Speaking in Tongues”


OTHER BOOKS EXPLORED BUT NOT DISCUSSED AT THE EVENT

Making It Up

by Penelope Lively. Viking, 2005, 2006

In this delightful group of stories, Lively combines autobiographical pieces with a fictional version of what-if-it-had-been-different. All are enjoyable; a couple are memorable.

Saving the World

by Julia Alverez. Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 2006.

Since we have liked other Alvarex work, we expected to like this better than we did. It presents a novel within a novel, one of which is based on a true story about the history of small pox vaccination, and one a fiction based on a character involved. Both are involved with human-service efforts to help prevent or cure disease. The novel is worth reading, but the two stories are unevenly presented.

A Walk on the Beach: Tales of Wisdom from an Unconventional Woman

by Joan Anderson. Broadway Books, 2004.

This book was not discussed, because other choices crowded it out, so it is left for you to read it and discover it for yourself. Anderson has written several books about self-discovery, and in this, she focuses on her encounters with the remarkable wife of psychotherapist Eric Erickson.

The Painted Drum

by Louise Erdrich, HarperCollins, 2005

The magical realism for which Erdrich’s fiction is especially know is masterfully worked in this remarkable novel. Even readers who resist magic realism will find this engrossing.



Some alumnae came sporting the classy Centennial Scarf -- others purchased them at the event.
WEC Alumna and Alumnae Association Board Member M. Suzanne Hager Kennedy SP ’57 wore hers
and poses here with a friend. Alumna Mary Kay Crowley O’Loughlin ’66 (right) designed the scarf.

CSC ALUMNAE ASSOCIATION SCARF Limited Edition: Second Century Collection NEW, VIBRANT – LEADING THE WAY INTO THE SECOND CENTURY OF THE COLLEGE Beautiful, silk scarf with design elements of the lace symbolic of our founding order of sisters, the outline of the rose window, and a splash of vibrant colors- Designed by alumna Mary Kay Crowley O’Loughlin ’66. Price: $75.00 each; $5 additional if mailed. To order, send check or credit card number to: CSC Alumnae Association, F-33, 2004 Randolph Ave., Saint Paul, MN 55105, 651-690-6666.

Actual size is 36'' by 36''.